The music on Among Friends was actually performed at San Francisco's Keystone Korner during a recorded engagement by the Bobby Hutcherson sextet. Pianist Cedar Walton opened each set with a few numbers and he was playing so well that in 1990 Evidence decided to release his material as a separate CD. Walton performs three songs ("Ruby My Dear," "My Old Flame" and "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face") solo, interprets four other pieces (three standards plus his own "Midnight Waltz"), in a trio with bassist Buster Williams and drummer Billy Higgins, and Hutcherson himself makes the group a quartet on "My Foolish Heart." Excellent hard bop-based music from the talented pianist.

The working trio of pianist Walton, bassist David Williams, and drummer Billy Higgins is not only bulletproof but in lockstep with Walton's extraordinary musical talents. This set, done at Yoshi's Nitespot in Oakland, CA for radio broadcast over KJAZ-FM, is a perfect example of the Walton trio's brilliance. Of the seven pieces, four are Walton's and comprise his better writings. "Bremond's Blues," an underrated composition in the Walton repertoire, starts and ends by quoting "Giant Steps" and paraphrasing "Sweet & Lovely" in the middle, and spreads buttery melodicism throughout. "N.P.S." is a Walton classic, with Higgins' tango-to-light-swing rhythm accenting a bluesy melody. "Fiesta Espanol" is quicker, brighter, and quite familiar to fans, with Higgins digging in on his lengthy drum solo, while "Ironclad" features an elongated intro and coda, stating the chiming staccato melody in two spurts over 14 minutes…

The colorful liner notes to this sensuous recording by the veteran vocalist and pianist make no bones about Cole's soothing, relaxing approach to standards that range from the obscure (Bill Withers' "Watching You, Watching Me") to the way too often recorded (a pleasant, smoky version of "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes"). Cole's voice is soft like Mel Tormé's, a bit rough like Tony Bennett, but altogether listenable. The real joy comes from the arrangements by Cole and pianist Cedar Walton. One of the liveliest of these is the final track, a swinging, soulful version of "You're Sensational," but there are imaginative touches of a subtle big-band sound on many other tracks that bring the production up a notch. Walton, trumpeter Lew Soloff, and Wes Montgomery-styled guitarist Jerry Byrd are all given ample solo space as well. Similar-styled performers like Tony Bennett have long garnered more glory for their works, but this is as solid as old-style vocal and trio jazz gets.

When jazz vocalist Freddy Cole sings, it's with a built-in groove that's unshakeable, with warm, honeyed tones that wrap the lyrics in velvet and set them down firmly in the pocket. Cole has one great little album here; if you thought it was impossible to produce a modern-day jazz vocal album that's not infused with endless oodles-of-noodles riffing that shows you nothing except the ability of the vocalist to sing everything but the melody, be prepared for greatness. With a small combo led by pianist Cedar Walton and tenor saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr., Cole has a backdrop that never gets in the way of his magic nor does anything that doesn't help the song. Timber-wise, he owes a lot of his phrasing to his older brother, Nat "King" Cole, and Francis Albert Sinatra, but Freddy ultimately remains his own man and that's what makes this album such a success. Ten or 12 stars, at least.

The most notable aspect to this fine effort by the 1980 Cedar Walton Trio (which is comprised of the pianist-leader, tenor saxophonist Bob Berg, bassist David Williams and drummer Billy Higgins) is that Abbey Lincoln takes vocals on four of the eight selections. Lincoln (who is in top form) introduces two of her songs ("Not in Love" and "Castles") and also interprets "In a Sentimental Mood" and Walton's tribute to Duke Ellington "The Maestro." Otherwise Walton's group plays a couple of common Thelonious Monk tunes, Jobim's "Sabia" and "On the Trail." A well-rounded and easily recommended set of advanced straightahead jazz.

Vibraphonist Milt Jackson teams up with pianist Cedar Walton, bassist Ray Brown and (on six of the eight songs) either Billy Higgins or Frank Severino on drums. Together they play group originals and (on the two drumless pieces) a pair of standards. Although the material was largely new, the swinging style is timeless and Milt Jackson typically sounds in top form; has he ever made an indifferent recording?

As strong as pianist Cedar Walton plays on his session, the main honors are taken by two of his sidemen. Tenor-saxophonist Hank Mobley, whose career was about to go into a complete eclipse, is in brilliant form, showing how much he had grown since his earlier days. Baritonist Charles Davis, who too often through the years has been used as merely a section player, keeps up with Mobley and engages in a particularly memorable tradeoff on the lengthy title cut. Mobley is well-showcased on "Summertime," Davis switches successfully to soprano on "Early Morning Stroll," and Walton (with the trio) somehow turns the "Theme From Love Story" into jazz.

For sometime Criss Cross Jazz producer Gerry Teekens had wanted to tape pianist Cedar Walton in a trio context, and the only problem with that was Cedar's being fairly heavily booked for gigs over Christmas, '92. So it had to be an afternoon session the day after Christmas (Boxing Day, as it is called in Britain). Hence our title - Manhattan Afternoon. And a very swinging post meridian it turned out to be as the inimitable Cedar and his two cooking companions of longstanding (David Williams - bass, Billy Higgins - drums) sailed through a terrific programme of ballads, blues and jazz originals.

Mobius is an album by pianist Cedar Walton recorded in 1975 and released on the RCA label in 1975.

Two killers from Cedar Walton – back to back on a single CD!